Torn Alliances
by Alex Traxel
Summary: Flame has a hard decision in front of him: whether to side with Itex, where is family is; Tyron, who he can't escape; or the runaway experiments that he's starting to befriend. Re-write of old stories.


A/N: Okay, so, this story is a kind of re-write. About four or five years ago, I wrote a few Max Ride stories that never really got past setting everything up, mainly because I didn't know what I was doing with them. But I just recently found them again and decided to try and finish what thirteen-year-old me started. I ended up mashing two of my old stories together, which were at one point called Ninja of Itex and The Cure, and adding some more elements. Hopefully this new combination will work better and I'll be able to actually finish this.

Disclaimer: I'm only going to say this once this entire story, so pay attention. I do not own Maximum Ride or anything that has been included in James Patterson's series. However, I do lay claim to Thrashers, Leopards, Tyron, and all of my characters that aren't actually in the books. Everything else belongs to JP and his publisher.

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Chapter One

The day was cold, the frigid air wiggling its way beneath clothing and biting into skin. Flame's breath plumed upward in a thick white cloud and he crouched closer to the small, flickering fire he held in his hands. He didn't dare to make it larger in case someone took it as an alarm and so kept it small, cupped in his hands so the light was more or less contained. It would have been easier to shift, to allow fur to sprout from his body and provide him with a natural coat, but it wasn't allowed. After all, it was impossible to wield a gun fully morphed; not only was he forced to all fours, but his claws got in the way and it was nearly impossible to actually aim. So he had to sit and watch while freezing to death, on the off chance that something came up that he needed to shoot.

Flame grumbled under his breath, shifting on his perch, his machine gun almost sliding from where it was leaning against his knee. The fire died in an instant and his hand darted out to grab the weapon before it could clatter off the roof. He pulled the weapon onto his lap, flipping the safety on and off absent-mindedly. Never before had he needed to use it while on watch, and he didn't think that today would be any different. The building was well guarded and protected. Outsiders could find it and anyone that they wanted to keep inside stayed inside. He found guard duty ridiculous but had to go along with it anyway. It was his job and there would be serious consequences if he disobeyed.

Bored, the young Thrasher rose from the rickety folding chair that was kept in the tower, holding his gun loosely in his hands as he paced in the small space provided. In one of the other towers, he could see one of his teammates doing the same thing, pacing and rubbing his arms to keep warm. A couple flakes of snow broke from the grey clouds overhead and landed on Flame's head. He frowned and slung his gun over his shoulder by its strap, creating his miniature, portable fire again and holding it close. A snowflake drifted slowly downward and melted in the sudden heat, wetting his thumb.

It was another hour before Flame was relieved of his post. By then, he'd simply given in and created a small fire on the ground, using the remains of the last chair as fuel. He kept it low, forcing the fire under control, taming its hunger and weakening the anger that made the flames lick upward, searching for more fuel. Snow had started to pile around him, creating a circle around the small fire.

"Flame," a young voice said behind him. The teenager turned, pulling his attention away from the flickering fire. A boy of about thirteen stood behind him, his own gun slung over his shoulder and looking much too large for him. His dark hair was a mess, as if he had just rolled out of bed, a theory that was helped by his still half-lidded, sleep-filled eyes. However, the cold and snow seemed to be waking him up rather quickly. "Your shift is over."

Flame nodded, snatching up his machine gun and standing. He was about to kill the fire but the boy stepped over quickly, eying it longingly. "Could you leave the fire going?" he pleaded. Flame glanced at it and then the boy, nodding once. "Thanks." The teenager didn't answer, simply hunching his shoulders against the cold and heading back inside through the stairwell in the middle of the roof.

Inside, the temperature seemed to rise a hundred degrees, and Flame's limbs immediately started to ache and tingle as blood started to flow quicker and warmer throughout his body. He took the stairs two at a time, hoping to reach his room before one of the scientists caught up to him and decided that they had something 'urgent' for him to take care of. While he just _love__d_ dragging experiments back and forth, Flame really considered a nap a better use of his time at the moment.

A minute later, Flame found himself on the second floor of the lab, walking through a completely white hall whose monotony was only broken up by turns and the occasional metal door set into the wall. He passed a couple Erasers, easily recognizable by the fact that even after so many trials they still looked like they should be posing for a magazine, but ignored them. The bears and wolves of Itex never got along great, and tended to avoid each other whenever possible. If no one spoke, then there was a much smaller chance of getting pissed off.

The second that Flame reached his room, hand wrapped around the doorknob to push his way inside, someone called his name from further down the hall. He stiffened and then let out a deep sigh, letting his hand fall away from the knob. Turning, he saw one of the scientists hurrying over to him and he inwardly groaned. Apparently, he just wasn't allowed to catch up on missed sleep that day.

The scientist was fairly young, at least compared to a lot of the people who worked in the facility, with bright blond hair and extremely blue eyes. Like all his colleagues, he wore a long white lab coat that went past his knees and was currently carrying a clipboard under one arm. The man slowed to a stop in front of the young Thrasher, who was waiting impatiently for the request he knew was coming.

"Hey, would you mind giving me a hand? Dr. Harris wants to run a couple tests on Alpha Two, but I can't handle it on my own. I need some help with escorting, if you're free," the scientist said. Flame worked to hide his grimace, but by the scientist's frown, he wasn't very successful. "I know Alpha Two can be difficult, but surely you'll be able to keep it under control. We could enlist whoever we next come across if you'd like."

"No. No, it's fine. I can handle it just fine. Just let me put this away" - he knocked the butt of his gun with his elbow - "and I'll join you." The scientist nodded, watching as Flame pulled open the door to his room and deposited the gun on his bed. He looked at the blankets longingly but then shook his head, backing out into the hallway and closing the door. Denying a scientist wasn't an option. They sounded like they gave the Thrashers and Erasers a choice, but it was simply a veiled command. Flame would just have to hold off on sleeping until later.

He followed the scientist through the halls, a silent shadow. No one paid them much attention besides a quick glance in their direction, if that. Besides their footsteps and the occasional hall-side conversation that they passed, they continued in silence, for which Flame was actually rather grateful. Even though he wouldn't admit it, he wasn't fond of listening to the scientists converse. It seemed to him that they could make even a simple greeting sound highly scientific and confusing, and he just wasn't all that interested in technical jargon.

The experiments' containment facility was in the basement. The basement door itself needed a key code to be opened before someone was allowed down the stairs. Once downstairs, every door along the hall had the same key code system. Each door also had a placard on it, below the small window, that briefly described which experiments were housed where. It was a helpful system that only newcomers followed, since everyone else was well aware of the layout without looking at the signs.

The door at the end of the hall was different from the others. It had no window in it and a tumbler wheel installed, like one might find on a bank vault. The sign simply said "Danger - Alphas" in large, black letters. The scientist punched in the key code and then turned the wheel. The click of the locks was easily audible before the door swung open. Open, it was clear that the door was a good five inches thick, again like a bank vault.

Lights flickered on inside, illuminating four cages, three of which had occupants who were blinking and shielding their eyes against the sudden light. To the left was a young boy, about eight years old, covered in green scales and scorch marks. Next to him was an older girl, approximately thirteen, with a calico pattern across her skin like a tattoo and a long cat tail. The last of the experiments was the one that they were there for. She was about the same age as the snake boy, with independantly moving eyes and extremely thick handcuffs around her wrists. All of them were looking at Flame and the scientist warily, discreetly pushing themselves up against the backs of their cages.

Flame lurked in the doorway, crossing his arms over his chest, as the scientist opened Alpha Two's cage. The handcuffed girl glowered silently, staying as far away from him as possible, which admittedly was only about a foot. "Come on, we won't hurt you," the scientist coaxed, his tone suggesting he was trying to calm a frightened animal, which Flame supposed wasn't too far from the truth. The girl just continued to glare, making the scientist sigh and reach in to pull her out of the cage. Once his hand got close enough, she smacked it with her heavy cuffs. The boy smothered a chuckle as the scientist quickly withdrew his hand and turned to Flame, looking both annoyed and pitiful at the same time.

Holding back a sigh, as he knew that wouldn't be very well received, the young Thrasher stepped forward and reached for the experiment. Just as she had done a moment ago, she attempted to smack him with her cuffs but he caught them mid-swing, latching onto the short chain between the heavy bracelets. The girl shouted and struggled, scrambling to find something to stop Flame from dragging her out. It didn't work and she was pulled from the cage, where she sprawled out on the ground. Flame ignored her attempts to stay and simply hauled her upright. It was fairly easy, considering he had about nine years, a foot and a half of height, and more than a hundred pounds more than she did. She continued to put up a fight anyway, twisting and squirming, though her attempts went unnoticed. Squirming away from someone who had you by the chain of a pair of handcuffs rather than your arm was extremely difficult and nearly impossible.

As Flame pulled her from the room, the cat girl hissed and growled while the snake boy just watched worriedly, his forked tongue flicking out a couple times. Their reactions were short-lived, as the scientists closed and locked the door once Alpha Two was clear.

The entire trip up to the exam room was hell on earth, in Flame's opinion. The girl would not stay still for more than a second! He knew he would have a mass of brusies going up the back of his legs from her feet, since somehow her kicks were still quite painful despite the fact that she was barefoot. His arm ached from her wrenching her hands back and forth in an attempt to make him let go, and he swore his ears would start bleeding at any moment if she continued to scream bloody murder with every step. At the stairs he'd had to lift her by the waist and carry her, since she refused to walk herself, and he'd almost fallen back down again because of her squirming and he'd definitely collected a new mass of bruises.

While Flame was struggling with a violent young teenage girl, the scientist simply walked ahead calmly, not even sparing a glance back. Every now and then he'd slow his pace when it became clear that Flame was falling behind, but otherwise he made no real indication that he even remembered he had people after him. His ability to ignore was amazing, since he seemed to be blocking out the girl's screams and shrieks that made everyone else's heads turn. Needless to say, Flame was more than happy to get rid of her as soon as they got to the exam room.

The room, like Alpha Two's cell and cuffs, was made with thick material. The door was heavy, the walls were covered with too many layers of plaster to count, and the viewing window would probably never be broken except through an explosion. Flame shoved her inside and closed the door, flinching involuntarily when she rammed the metal and made it ring. The scientist had disappeared into the next room, the viewing chamber, and Flame was quick to make his escape. If they needed someone to handle her during the tests, they could get one of the Erasers - escorting and controlling experiments had been their job originally. They could easily do it again if the scientists needed it.

Halfway back to his room, he heard someone yell out, "Hey, Flame! Wait up!" His footsteps faltered before he stopped walking altogether, his head dropping in despair. He let out an audible sigh, slowly turning around to look at the speaker for what felt like the millionth time that day. It seemed that he was just destined to stay sleep-deprived forever.


End file.
